Blake Shelton shows he has more than 'The Voice'

Keith Groller, Of The Morning Call

As one of the vocal coaches on NBC's singing competition "The Voice," Blake Shelton and fellow coaches Adam Levine, Christina Aguilera and Cee Lo Green spin their chairs around when they hear someone they like.

Had he been auditioning at the Allentown Fair grandstands on Wednesday night, Shelton would have had thousands of chairs spinning with approval.

The country singer, relatively underrated before getting his seat on "The Voice" despite a dozen No. 1 hits over the past 11 years, proved to be the consummate entertainer in his 17-song set that captivated the crowd of 7,164 for 90 minutes.

Shelton, the reigning Academy of Country Music's male vocalist of the year, is clearly country at his core and his songs hit all of the usual country themes like hard-partying, defiance and hillbilly fun.

But the 35-year-old Oklahoman displayed much more versatility than expected during his fast-moving, free-flowing show that offered a surprise appearance by his wife and fellow country star Miranda Lambert near the end.

Shelton creatively used the backdrop of a story about his "very different family," to showcase various musical genres and his ability to cover them.

He said his mother and father loved "Play That Funky Music" by Wild Cherry, and his late brother, who died at the age of 24, was always playing "Centerfold" by Tuesday's fair headliner, the J. Geils Band. He said his sister bombarded him with "My Prerogative" by Bobby Brown until one day he told her to kiss his country butt, which, of course, led into one of his hits, "Kiss My Country Ass."

Even more impressive than Shelton's ability to cover funk and hip-hop material was how he maintained a steady dialogue with the audience without it breaking the flow of music as he segued neatly into past hits and then transitioned from his first hit "Austin" in 2001 to his current chart-topper "Over."

Unlike some male country stars like Toby Keith and Trace Adkins who only reveal their rough-and-rugged side, or Alan Jackson, who reveals almost no personality at all, Shelton engaged the audience in some self-deprecating humor and earnest, friendly banter that fit nicely around light-hearted hits like "Some Beach" and "The More I Drink."

He did seem genuinely surprised at the size of the audience, especially for a Wednesday night, and encouraged them to sing along at several points — a request that was happily obliged.

Shelton hadn't mentioned his wife, Lambert, all night until she surprisingly strode on stage to join her husband on "Hillbilly Bone."

The crowd, already on its feet, roared with delight.

As pleasing as the surprise appearance of another bona fide country star was, she was mere icing for Shelton's well-concocted recipe for an entertaining show.

At one point, he expressed wishes that he'd be invited back to perform at the fair next year.

If the crowd had anything to do with it, that invitation has already been sent.

Opening act Sunny Sweeney set the right tone for a Shelton by hitting the usual country touchstones of divorce, drinking, cars and even dirty laundry during her twangy, 12-song set.

Sweeney, like Shelton, also carried on a steady dialogue with the audience to set up each song, often polling them to see who was single, who was divorced, who had a job, etc.

Her best effort was a ballad "Carolina On The Line" that showcased versatile musician Jake Clayton on keyboard.